Hispasat

Spain's first GEO communications satellite was launched by Ariane in September, 1992, as Hispasat 1A and positioned at 30 degrees W. The launch of a sister satellite, Hispasat 1B, followed 10 months later. Based on the Eurostar spacecraft bus developed by British Aerospace and Matra Marconi, Hispasat is designed to support civil, military, and government communications requirements through an array of multi-frequency transponders.

With an on-orbit mass of 1.1 metric tons, the government-owned Hispasat 1A carries 15 active transponders: three X-band with one spare and 12 Ku-band (8 at 55 W. 4 at 110 W) with six spares. The Hispasat bus measures 1-.7 m by 1.9 m by 2.1 m with a solar array span of 22 m and an initial power capacity of 3.2 kW. A problem with the Spanish-manufactured primary antenna on Hispasat 1A, led Matra Marconi to procure an Aerospatiale antenna for Hispasat 1B. The spacecraft design life is ten years. From its position over the Atlantic Ocean, Hispasat is capable of servicing not only Europe but also North and South America (References 388-390).